NEWS: Sub-Tiguan SUV Could Be Coming from Volkswagen

Following the enthusiastic public reception of the Cross Up! and Buggy Up! concepts that debuted at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show, Volkswagen is reportedly considering an Up!-based SUV, according to the German newspaper Handelsblatt. SUVs are one of the fastest-growing vehicle segments in Europe.

Albrecht Reimold, the plant manager in charge of the Bratislava, Slovakia factory where the current Up! is produced, said the Up! was always intended to be a vehicle family, and not just a single model, but would not go on record with specific production plans for the reported new model.

The Up!-based SUV would reportedly start below $26,000, approximately $6000 less than the Tiguan model starts at in Germany. For comparison, the current U.S.-spec Tiguan starts at $23,660 including destination.

Like the Up! on which it would be based, as well as the subcompact Ford EcoSport, the SUV version of the Up! would likely not be sold in the U.S. market.

The article notes that sales of SUVs are up 11.6 percent in Germany, and are projected to top 480,000 by 2015, representing 15 percent of total new vehicle sales in the country.

Do you think VW should sell a SUV in the U.S. market smaller and cheaper than the Tiguan? Or stick with what it has? Share your thoughts below.

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